Egypt – The country where the Israelites lived for over 400 years until the Egyptians made them into slaves

Hebrew – The language the Israelites spoke. The Egyptians called the Israelites “Hebrews,” after their language.

Moses – The Israelite child, raised by Egyptian royalty. His name means, “Drawn from the water.

Ramses – Moses’ adopted brother, the next pharaoh of Egypt.

Exodus – The second book of the bible. The word means “Exit” or “Escape.”

“We Believe” Book pages: 96-102

Homework: none

Lesson #12 – January 14, 2019

Topic: Unit One Test/The Story of Moses (Introduction)

(Most of our class time was spent reviewing for and taking the Unit Test. The remaining time was used to introduce the first lesson of Unit Two, The Life of Moses)

Main Ideas:

After Joseph saved Egypt from famine, the Israelites lived in Egypt for over 400 years.

The Egyptians called their Israelite neighbors “Hebrews,” after the Hebrew language that they spoke.

The government in Egypt changed and the new Pharaohs did not respect the Israelites as heroes. In fact, they distrusted the Israelites and fear they would overthrow Egypt.

The Egyptians declared that all Hebrews would be forced to live as slaves.

The Egyptians made a law that all Hebrew baby boys would be put to death. That way, the Israelite population would never grow larger than the Egyptian population.

A Israelite mother tried to save her baby son by hiding him in a basket and floating him away in the river.

The baby was found by the Pharaoh’s daughter, who decided to keep him as a playmate for her own son, Ramses.

She called the baby Moses, a name that means “drawn from the water”

“We Believe” Book Pages: Pages 96, 97 and first two paragraphs of page 98.

Homework: Any students who were absent and missed the Unit One Test should review the Unit One Study Guide for retest day.

Lesson #11 – January 7, 2019

Topic: The Liturgical Year and Unit One Review

Main Ideas:

The Church Year starts with Advent, progressing through Christmas, Ordinary Time (part one), Lent, Easter, and Ordinary Time (part 2)

Each of the Liturgical Seasons has a color – purple/rose for Advent and Lent, white and gold for Christmas and Easter, and green for Ordinary Time.

Red is the color of fire, symbolizing the passion of the Holy Spirit or or the blood of the martyrs.

White is used for major feasts and sacraments, except for Confirmation, which uses red fro the Holy Spirit.

The liturgical day, as in Jewish tradition, is measured from sunset to sunset. However, celebration of The Lord’s Day has changed from the day of the Jewish Sabbath (Saturday) to the day of Jesus’ Resurrection (Sunday).

The Christmas Season is made of many holy days, including Christmas Day (Dec. 25), the feast of St. Steven (Dec. 26), The feast of St. John (Dec. 27), The feast of the Holy Innocents (Dec. 28), The feast of the Holy Family (The Sunday after Christmas), and the feast of Mary; the Mother of God (Jan. 1)

Finished watching the movie, Joseph, King of Dreams. Here is a summary of the second part of the story:

While in prison, Joseph discovered that when the other prisoners told him their dreams, he could interpret the dreams’ meanings. After hearing one man’s dream, Joseph predicted that the man would be set free and would be called back to work at the Pharaoh’s house. Three days later, the prediction came true.

Years later, the Pharaoh began to have troubling dreams. His servant remembered the man he had met in prison. Joseph was brought to the palace and the Pharaoh told Joseph his dreams. Joseph explained what the dreams predicted: there would be seven years of prosperity for farmers, followed by seen years of drought and famine. In order to survive, everyone should start saving food now for the years ahead. Pharaoh was so impressed with Joseph that he made Joseph his assistant and put Joseph in charge of collecting the food.

Seven years passed and Joseph had successfully stored enough food to feed Egypt through the famine. Meanwhile, the famine had reached Joseph’s family in Canaan. His brothers had heard that there was food in Egypt, so they traveled there to ask for food for their families. Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him. Instead, they mistook him for an Egyptian nobleman. They asked for food for themselves, their father, and their youngest brother, Benjamin, who had been born while Joseph was away. Joseph decided to test his brothers. He asked them to prove that their story was true by bringing their brother, Benjamin, to Egypt. Until then, their brother, Judah, would stay in Egypt as a prisoner.

The other brothers brought Benjamin to Egypt. Joseph welcomed them as his guests. He released Judah and gave all of them all of the food they needed. Before they left, Joseph decided to test them. He secretly hid a gold cup in Benjamin’s things. Then, he accused Benjamin of stealing from the palace. When his guards searched the brothers, they found the cup in Benjamin’s bag. Joseph threatened to throw Benjamin in prison, but his brothers begged for mercy and asked if they could be sent to prison instead. Joseph knew that his brothers had repented and become good men. He revealed his true identity and forgave them for selling him as a slave. Then he invited his family and all of the Canaanites to come live in Egypt, where they would be fed and cared for.

Textbook Pages: 161-164

Lesson #9 – December 10, 2018

Topic: Joseph and his Brothers

Main Ideas:

Reviewed the prophet Isaiah and were given a homework assignment (listed below)

Read and discussed the story of Joseph, and began watching the movie, Joseph, King of Dreams. Here is a summary of the first part of the story:

In the old tradition, Jacob had two wives, Leah and Rachel. Leah had 10 sons. Rachel, Jacob’s favorite wife, had one son, Joseph. Joseph was Jacob’s favorite child. While the other sons worked as shepherds, Joseph was raised as a scholar and was expected to lead the family one day. Joseph’s brothers became jealous, especially after Joseph was given a special coat, which helped to set him apart. Joseph also had a special talent. God would send him visions of the future in his dreams. One night Joseph had a dream where his brothers all bowed to him as though he were their king. When his brothers heard of this they decided to get rid of Joseph. They pushed him down a dry well, but they decided that they could not leave him to die. Instead they sold him to traveling merchants, who would take Joseph to Egypt and sell him as a slave. The brothers returned home and told their parents that Joseph was killed by wild wolves.

Joseph arrived in Egypt and was sold as a slave. His new master was a man named Potiphar, who was the chief steward to the Pharaoh. As a slave, Joseph was hard working and well-educated. His master noticed his talents and put Joseph in charge of managing the household. Joseph and Potiphar became friends until Potiphar’s wife became attracted to Joseph. She flirted with Joseph and tried to seduce him but Joseph rejected her, refusing to betray his master. Potiphar’s wife lied, claiming that it was Joseph who had tried to seduce her. Potiphar sent Joseph to prison for his betrayal.

Book Pages: 69-70

Homework: Isaiah Prophecy

When the prophet Isaiah predicted the coming of Jesus, he used metaphors of enemies coming together in peace to describe the peace that Jesus would bring.

Draw a picture of two enemies coming together in peace.

Write a description to show who the enemies are and what they are doing to show they are at peace.

A patriarch was A father who is the leader of his family and related families.

The early patriarchs were called to start our religion, in order to prepare the world for the coming of Jesus.

Abraham was called to be the founder of God’s religion and the father of a great nation.

Sarah – Abraham’s wife. She wanted a son, but thought that she was too old to have children. She laughed when she heard that God had promised them a son of their own.

Isaac – The son of Abraham and Sarah. God asked Abraham to kill Isaac as a sacrifice, but then revealed that it was only a test of his loyalty. Isaac’s life was spared. He grew up and took over as leader of the new nation.

Rebekah – Isaac’s wife. She favored their second son, Jacob, and wished that he would become the next patriarch.

Esau – Isaac and Rebekah’s first-born son. Esau grew into a strong, hairy man. He traded his birthright (the right to lead) to his twin brother, Jacob, in exchange for a bowl of soup.

Jacob – Isaac and Rebekah’s son and Esau’s twin brother. After his father was tricked into giving Jacob the right to lead, Jacob went into hiding. On his travels, he met an angel who challenged him to a battle.

Leah – Jacob’s first wife. Jacob was not in love with Leah, but he had to marry her in order to marry her sister, Rachel, whom Jacob truly loved. Leah was a dutiful wife and the mother of ten sons.

Rachel – Jacob’s beloved second wife. Jacob had worked for fourteen years to earn the right to marry her. She had two sons, Joseph and Benjamin. Rachel died giving birth to Benjamin.

Book Pages: 68-73

Homework: None

Lesson #6 – November 12, 2018

Topic: Noah’s Ark and The Tower of Babel

Main Ideas:

Noah’s Ark is the story of the great flood

Covenant – A sacred promise between God and mankind

The Tower of Babel is the story of how Noah’s decedents refused God’s orders, so God made them spread out across the world.

The Tower of Babel reminds us that all humans are family, regardless of our differences.

Book Pages: 60-63

Homework: None

Lesson #5 – October 29, 2018

Full classes were postponed this week, so students could hold a prayer service for The Tree of Life Synagogue.

Topic: Cain and Abel

Main Ideas:

Cain and Abel were the children of Adam and Eve

Cain killed his brother out of jealousy and committed the world’s first murder

God gave Cain a penalty, but he still forgave him.

God does not want us to seek revenge

Textbook Pages: 58-59

Homework: If you have not completed the Creation Project, turn it in ASAP. (See directions below.)

Lesson #4 – October 22, 2018

Topic: The Sin of Adam and Eve

Main Ideas:

Adam and Eve choose to sin and disobey God’s rules.

Steward – Caretaker; One who has responsibly and authority over something.

Sin – A thought, word, deed, or omission that goes against God’s will.

Original Sin – The first sin, committed by Adam and Eve / the natural desire to sin.

Textbook: 46-51

Homework: Second week to finish the Creation Project – Use your own creative skills to make something that celebrates God’s creations. Examples of acceptable projects include pictures, poems, collage, or song lyrics. Projects due on October 29.

Lesson #3 – October 15, 2018

Topic: Creation

Main Ideas:

The stories in Genesis are more like legends or fairy tales than true history. However, the lessons that these stories teach us are true.

The First Creation Story (a story about how God created all things in seven days) teaches truths about God: God is eternal, all-powerful, all-knowing, and ever-present.

The Second Creation Story (a story about the creation of mankind) teaches about human dignity, and our responsibility to care for our world.

Human Dignity – Value and worth that comes from being human and being made in God’s image.

Free Will – The ability to choose between right and wrong.

Conscience – The ability to tell the difference between right and wrong.

Soul – The immortal, spiritual part of a human.

Textbook: 34-45

Homework: Creation Project – Use your own creative skills to make something that celebrates God’s creations. Examples of acceptable projects include pictures, poems, collage, or song lyrics.

Lesson #2 – October 1, 2018

Topic: Reading the Bible

Main Ideas:

The Bible is a collection of seventy-three different books, which were written over the course of thousands of years.

It contains many different types of writing, including histories, short stories, poetry, and more.

The Old Testament, the first part of the bible, contains stories about God’s early relationship with his people.

The New Testament, the second part of the bible, tells the story of Jesus, His life, and His teachings.

Different bibles may have different page layouts, so we look up writings by checking the Book, the Chapter, and the Verse. (Example – Genesis 2:1 “Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.”)

The Book of Genesis is the first book of the bible. “Genesis” means “Beginnings”

Textbook Pages: 26 – 32

Homework: None

Lesson #1 – September 24, 2018

Topic: God Makes Himself Known to Us

Main Ideas:

Divine Revelation – When God makes himself know to us

The phrase “Divine Revelation” is made of two words:

Divine – Holy or Godlike

Revelation – When something is revealed, shown, or made known

Sacred Scripture – The Bible, the written record of our relationship with God.

Divine Inspiration – When God guides people to do things, like how He inspired the authors of the Bible.

Tradition – The non-written part of our religion. Things we do and how we live.